The Pandorica, Tenth Doctor Style
by AnitaHoward
Summary: What if the Tenth Doctor had been at the opening of the Pandorica, instead of the Eleventh? Featuring Ten, Donna, and Wilf.
1. Prologue

_A/N: This is an extended AU in which the Tenth Doctor doesn't regenerate, and Donna continues to travel with him; so just forget_ Turn Left/The Stolen Earth/Journey's End_, as well as the specials and _The End of Time._ I've wanted to do something like this for quite a while. Written as a challenge between Shivver and myself because we were wondering how different it would be if Ten instead of Eleven had been at the opening of the Pandorica. Go and check out her take on it, with the Fifth Doctor!_

_By the way, this is part of my 'Doctor/Donna ONLY' collection of stories, featuring just the Tenth Doctor and Donna as best friends. Check out my community for more great stories with just the Doctor and Donna :)_

**PROLOGUE**

"_Doctor!" She comes running into the Tardis, breathless._

_He looks up from working on the console, mallet in hand. He grins. "Did you have a … Donna, what's wrong?"_

"_There's a crack in the wall of my granddad's bedroom and …"_

"_Well patch it up then!"_

_She gives him her frostiest glare and he shuts his mouth, watching her carefully._

"_He said he's been hearing noises through it, so I listened, and I could hear them too! It sounds like they're saying something about someone escaping!"_

"_Oooh," says the Doctor, his expression changing to one of interest. "Let's check it out then, shall we?"_

_XXXXXXXXX_

_Starship UK goes on its way, and the Doctor opens the Tardis door._

"_Where to next?" he asks._

"_Doctor, what's that?" Donna points in alarm, and he turns around to see a crack, glowing golden around the edges. "I thought you closed that crack up! What's that crack doing on Starship UK?"_

"_I … I sort of … glued it together. Glue doesn't hold forever, and we still don't know what caused the crack. Whatever caused it is still causing it. We need to find the source. Come on!"_

_XXXXXXXXX_

"_Before you go," Churchill interrupts, chewing his cigar. "Can you advise me on one other, small matter?"_

_The Doctor half rolls his eyes, and Donna turns away to hide a grin. They follow the prime minister to Bracewell's lab. The scientist is nowhere to be seen, but Churchill does not hesitate. He leads them to a small room, filled with odds and ends of machinery and tools, and nods toward the ceiling. Donna doesn't even have to look to know what it is: the crack in her granddad's wall._

"_I'm trying to find out what it is," the Doctor is saying. "It's some sort of … rupture. A tear in time and space. We've seen it before. Just … just stay away from it, all right?"_

"_Well, thank you, Doctor. You've been a wonderful help." Churchill sticks out his hand and shakes the Doctor's vigorously, then blows a small kiss in Donna's direction. "Thank you, both of you."_

"_Any time," says Donna, saluting._

_XXXXXXXXX_

"_Poor Vincent," murmurs the Doctor._

_Donna's eyes fill with tears, and she turns away from the painting. "I was so _sure_!" she says. "I thought that we had given him a reason to keep painting … to keep hoping for the best."_

"_I guess it was too late by then. Still! You got your name on one of his paintings. He remembered how kind you were to him, and that's something. He didn't die as sad a death as he might have otherwise."_

"_I know. It's just … couldn't we go back? Couldn't we get to him years before he started going downhill?"_

"_I'm sorry, Donna, but no."_

_She sighs. "I knew you were going to say that."_

_They reach the Tardis, and the Doctor opens the door. Unnoticed behind them, the crack opens just a little wider._

_XXXXXXXXX_

"_Oh, Gramps, you were marvelous!" Donna grins at him, then at the Doctor. "I'm so glad we got it all sorted out with the Silurians. You're really a member of the team now."_

_She looks back at the Doctor; he is staring at the crack, the same crack that has been pursuing them for so long. It is in the wall of the cave, and is much wider than she has seen it before. Hints of whispering float out of it._

"_What _is_ it?" asks Donna. "Why do we keep seeing it?"  
"I don't know," he mutters. "Why does everyone seem to know but me?"  
"I don't know," offers Wilf._

_The Doctor pulls off his tie and wraps it several times around his hand. "Maybe there's something in there that will give us some information."  
"You're nuts!" Donna says. "You can't stick your hand in there!"_

"_Watch me." The Doctor kneels down by the crack._

"_Stop him, Gramps!"_

"_Uh, Doctor, I don't think ..."_

_The Doctor puts his hand in. His face contorts and he yells with pain. Donna springs forward, but he pulls his hand out before she can reach him. "Got it!"  
"What is it?"_

"_It could be anything. Blimey, that hurt!" He opens his hand and is about to examine the thing in his hand when there is a sound behind them. All three turn and see Restac, crawling towards them slowly and painfully, her gun aimed right at the Doctor._

"_No!" Donna and Wilf shout at the same time. "Doctor!"_

"_For my sister," whispers Restac._

_Wilf shoves the Doctor aside just as the Silurian discharges the gun. The blast hits him in the chest, and he crumples to the ground._

_Donna stares in horror, paying no attention to Restac as she breathes out her last breath: "Apes."_

_The Doctor is cradling Wilf's head in his arms. "I'm sorry, Wilf. I'm so, so sorry. That was my fault. I should have been paying more attention. Why did you do it, Wilf?"_

"_Because … you're the most wonderful man … I've ever met …" the old man gasps. "I don't want you to die."_

_Donna kneels beside her grandfather with tears streaming down her cheeks. "Gramps, you're gonna be all right. All we have to do is get him to the Tardis, right Doctor?"_

_The Doctor stares at her with that look that she hates so much, the one that tells her he won't answer because he doesn't have the heart to break her heart with words._

"_Doctor, don't do this to me! You never give up! Help him. Please, Doctor."_

_His eyes remain fixed on her face, and he does not reply, but he begins to lift Wilfred up. Donna stands and is about to help him when she notices tendrils of light reaching out from the crack and surrounding Wilf and the Doctor._

"_Doctor!" she cries._

_He looks down and his eyes widen. "Get back, Donna!"_

"_What about you?"_

"_I'll be fine. Stay back. Get into the Tardis." He tosses her the key. "Come on, Wilf. Stay with us. You don't deserve to be erased."_

_But it is too late. Already the old man's form is growing translucent; the light obscures his face. The Doctor steps back and bumps into Donna._

"_I thought I told you to get inside," he growls._

"_We can't just leave him," whispers Donna. "You said that if he goes into the crack, we'll forget all about him. I can't forget him!"_

"_I'm sorry, Donna." He doesn't meet her eyes, but holds out his hand. "The key. I need the key."_

_She gives it to him, and he opens the door. "Come on, Donna, we need to go."_

_When she doesn't move, he takes her shoulders and gently leads her inside. "Donna, if you remember him, you won't forget him. Try to remember. Where did he live?"_

"_Chiswick."_

"_Brilliant. What was his full name?"_

"_Wilfred … Samuel … Mott. Mott."_

"_What did he always call you?"_

_She presses her hand to her forehead. "I don't know! I can't remember!"_

"_He called you sweetheart. Come on, Donna, don't give up!"_

_Slowly, her face clears and she looks up at him. The sorrow and pain in her eyes is gone, replaced by a slight look of puzzlement. "Is everything all right, Doctor?"_

_He turns away to the console with a sigh. "Molto bene," he replies, in a tone that says the exact opposite. Donna goes to his side._

"_No, really. Are you OK? Because you look sad."_

"_What about you?" He turns and looks at her, and in doing so sees a picture frame lying face down on the floor._

"_Oh, don't worry about me," she says. "Where do we go next?"_

_When she isn't looking, the Doctor picks up the picture frame. He turns it over, and sees a photograph of Wilf, Donna, and the Doctor on Felspoon. Wilfred, strangely, isn't fading out of the picture. The Doctor puts it in his coat pocket and sighs again._

**A/N - **I know that in the show, they meet Vincent after the Silurians, but I changed it because the Silurian one seemed like the best one to end the prologue with.


	2. Chapter One

"This cliff face, then," said Donna. "Oldest graffiti in the universe? What are we waiting for?"

"Your wish is my command," replied the Doctor, who had already been setting the coordinates before Donna voiced her approval. "Using the Tardis, we can translate the words and find out what someone millions of years ago … billions, maybe! Wanted us to know. Perhaps it's the name of the first people to be on the planet. Or the epigraph of a beloved leader."

"Or maybe a billboard pointing the way to the nearest market." Donna grabbed onto her favorite handhold just in time, as the Tardis began its trip.

"Yes," the Doctor said, scratching the back of his neck. "It could be that. Of course, that wouldn't be much fun."

The ship landed with a jolt, and they looked at each other.

"Ready?" The Doctor held out his hand.

"Ready!"

The doors opened, and they found themselves looking at …

"Stonehenge?" Donna frowned. "Doctor! You've done it again!"

The Doctor looked back at the Tardis. "Don't look at me! I set the coordinates properly!"

"Oi! That's no excuse, spaceman. Now hurry up and let's get back inside."

"No, wait. If we're here, we might as well have a look around." He sniffed, then knelt down and brought a bit of dirt to his tongue. "This is around the year three hundred."  
"Then why is Stonehenge still old?"

"Oh, it's been old for centuries before this. I've always meant to go back far enough to find out who actually built it, and why."  
"Maybe it was aliens." Donna rolled her eyes.

The Doctor took no notice. He pulled out his sonic screwdriver and began scanning the area. Meanwhile, Donna wandered around. She had never been to Stonehenge; that sort of thing had never interested her much before she met the Doctor. It was strange to be standing there, in the year three hundred, and see it still looking just the same as in postcards. Maybe there were less weather marks, and maybe a few more stones were still standing, but only someone who was familiar with it would be able to tell the difference. She looked out towards where the sun was beginning to set, and with a jolt noticed riders coming towards them.

"Doctor!"

"In a minute," he mumbled, continuing to scan the ground and stones.

"Doctor, someone's coming!"

"Ah ha! Come here, Donna."

He had bent down and was pulling away turf and moss from a stone. There was a creak and a grinding and the stone moved away to reveal a wide hole with steps leading down into it. Donna gave a last glance at the approaching riders and followed the Doctor into the hole.

It was pitch black, and she was about to suggest that she get a flashlight when the Doctor produced one from his pocket. He handed it to her and then took out another one.

"Oh, look at _this_!" he said.

Donna came closer and shone her light on a huge cubic object. It was covered in strange symbols and shapes. The Doctor was circling it slowly, and in a moment she couldn't see his light anymore.

Five minutes later, as she was tiring of looking at the thing, he was beside her again, shining his flashlight on her.

"What did you say about someone coming?" he asked.

"Uh … just that someone was coming."

"Let's go meet them."

They climbed out from beneath Stonehenge and found themselves face to face with five Roman soldiers.

_XXXXXXXXX_

"Hello!" the Doctor said, sticking out his hand. The Roman leader ignored it.

"You are to come with us," he said.

"Well, that all depends on where you're taking us," said the Doctor cheerfully. "We don't fancy being thrown into the arena as lion bait. Or being used as practice dummies for gladiators. Where are you taking us?"

Donna noticed that he was nodding ever so slightly in the general direction of the Tardis. She felt around her neck for the key, but didn't move. If he wanted her to make a dash for the Tardis, then he was going to have to dash with her.

"We have been sent by Cleopatra. You will be given safe conduct."

"Yeah," the Doctor rubbed the back of his neck. "Says Cleopatra. Doesn't she poison her slaves or something nice like that?"

The leader drew his sword and positioned it two inches from the Doctor's heart. Donna gasped.

"Safe conduct is only for those who obey," the Roman said. "Come with me, or die."

"Oi, Roman boy!" Donna said. "How does Cleopatra even know we're here? Did we send her a text message? Did she give us a call? No. So what's your game?"

"She says that she knows the Doctor. That is all I know."

The Doctor eyed the sword calmly. "Come along, Donna." He looked up at the Roman. "Do we have to walk the whole way? Because, I do have some transportation if you're a bit short on horses."

"No, you will ride with me; I value my head too much to let you escape so easily. Cleopatra warned me that you are slippery and treacherous."

"Oh did she now? Tell her thank you from me." He paused. "Never mind, I'll tell her myself."

Donna was helped into the saddle by another soldier, who then mounted behind her.

After about half an hour's riding, a bustling Roman camp came into view. Quintas, the leader, dismounted and waited for Donna and the Doctor to join him. Then he led them into a large tent where an Egyption woman sat, or rather reclined, by a table filled with food. She was delicately popping grapes into her mouth.

The Doctor walked straight up to her and said, "So, Cleopatra, what are you doing here? You're supposed to be in Egypt … dead."

She raised her eyes to him and fluttered her eyelashes. "Maybe so, but where's the fun in that?"

Donna blinked twice. That voice … those eyes. "_River_?" she said. Well, practically shrieked.

"River?" the Doctor said, his tone even. "This is ridiculous."

"Well, sweetie, I had to get you here somehow. I'm sorry I couldn't provide first class transportation; this is the first century, after all."

"Never mind Cleopatra!" Donna said. "River is supposed to be in the ..."

"No, Donna!" the Doctor moved towards her. "You can't tell her about that. It's in her future still."

"Oh, my future! How exciting. Glad I've got one." River fluttered her eyelashes again, but then her face grew serious. "Doctor, I brought you here because there was nothing else I could do."

"What do you mean?"

"The cracks in time and space. I'm sure you've seen them."

"Yes, I have. Are you going to tell me what they are?"

"They have something to do with the Pandorica."

"I don't believe in the Pandorica," said the Doctor, shaking his head. "That's a fairy tale."

"Then what's that thing beneath Stonehenge, hmm? Come on, Doctor, don't tell me you didn't figure it out already."

"I still don't see what that has to do with the cracks in time."

River rolled her eyes, and Donna felt like slapping the sarcastic look off of her face. The Doctor was silent.

"So, Doctor ..." began Donna. "What's the Pandorica?"

He sighed. "It's a legend. A Gallifreyan legend, about someone who was so feared that all the races of the universe sent out their armies to capture him. When they finally did it, they imprisoned him in a box from which they thought he could never escape."

"But did he?"

"Some people say he did, some people say he didn't."

"Who was he?"

"I've heard it was Rassilon. I've heard it was someone worse. But no one knows."

"The cracks in time come from this," River said quietly.

Donna and the Doctor turned and saw her holding a rolled up canvass, which she proceeded to lay flat on the table, pushing aside food and drink. They leaned in to get a look at it in the dim light.


	3. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Afterwards, Donna could never properly explain her feelings when she saw the picture. It was a picture from a madman's mind, chaotic and senseless. And yet she knew what she was seeing, just as surely as the Doctor and River knew.

"The Tardis," she breathed.

The Doctor slowly drew something out of his pocket and laid it on the table.

"I reached into the crack and found this."

Donna picked it up and turned it over. It was a piece of the Tardis, burnt around the edges. _Chaotic. Senseless._

River went into attack mode. "You put your _hand_ into it? Your _hand_?"

Donna turned on her. Sure, she had told the Doctor not to do it, but River didn't know him. Why couldn't she just shut up? But before she could say anything, River laughed.

"I would've done the same thing," she said. "I've just never been close enough."

The Doctor was ignoring them both, studying the painting, his brow furrowed. Donna moved closer to him. There were a lot of questions she wanted to ask, but with River right there she didn't feel comfortable talking to him like she usually did.

"So," she said, in a slightly disinterested tone. "what're you going to do?"

"That's the question, isn't it?" He dropped the Tardis-bit into his pocket and turned away from the painting. "Is there anything to do when a time machine explodes? How can I know _when _it's exploding? It's powerful enough to blow a hole in time _and _space. What blew it up? And why?"

Donna thought he sounded slightly panicked. Out of instict she put her hand on his arm, with the feeling that River had her eyes on her every move.

"Well," said River. "I happen to have something that might answer some of your questions. Coordinates that I got from … well, we won't go into that right now." She tossed her black wig off and shook out her hair. "Glad to have that thing off. Let's get to the Tardis."

She strode (or sauntered; Donna wasn't sure which fit better) out of the tent to give orders to the soldiers.

"Are you scared, Doctor?" asked Donna.

"Yes."

"If it makes you feel any better, I am too."

He looked at her with just a hint of a smile. "We'll sort it out. We always do."

"There's something I've been wondering," she said. "If we die now; if the Tardis explodes with us in it; then what happens to River's future? And if she isn't there to save you in our past, then how can this future of ours even happen? It'll be a giant paradox!"

"If the Tardis explodes and causes a crack in time and space, and everything slowly gets pulled in until it never happened, I guess it won't matter much. But in the Library, when you were gone, River accidentally let slip something about the Pandorica. I can't promise, but I think we'll get out of it somehow."

He smiled at her, a full smile now, and she grinned back. "Let's go follow your 'sweetie', then," said Donna.

He pushed her lightly with his elbow. "I've never called her that."

"I hope you never do."

_XXXXXXXXX_

When they got back to Stonehenge, River insisted on going down to see the Pandorica. She and the Doctor went around and around it.

"Have you touched it?" she asked.

"No," said the Doctor.

"Well that's not like you, sweetie. Why don't you?"

He put out his hand, hesitating, and like a flash Donna knew what he was afraid of but wasn't telling her. _The Pandorica was meant for him. _She saw the realization hit River at almost the same time.

"Doctor, don't!" shouted Donna. At the same time River shoved him away from the box. But it was too late; his hand connected with it, and it came to life.

The Doctor fell back, wringing his hand as if he had gotten an electric shock. Donna ran to him.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah … just …" He looked at her, and she saw fear written on his face. He lowered his voice. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you what I thought. I …"

"It's unlocking from the inside, Doctor!" called River. She was scanning it with her vortex manipulator. "There are loads of protocols being disabled in there."

"All right," said the Doctor, switching moods completely. "We need to act fast. How long before it's opened, do you think?"

"An hour or two," said River. "Tops. Hang on." She shook the manipulator. "Something's interfering."

"Where is it coming from?"

"Out there." She pointed up at the roof.

"Come on," said the Doctor, grabbing Donna's hand.

They went outside and looked around. There was nothing visible for miles. The sun was setting.

"River, I need you to go back and gather as many Romans as you can."

"Romans?" spluttered River. "We don't need them."  
"The Roman army is the best the world has ever seen. I don't say the universe, but this planet, yes, definitely. We don't have any Sontarans, so Romans will have to do." He added to Donna, in a low tone, "I'm not going in that box without a fight."

River mounted up and galloped away, and the Doctor continued looking around for a few minutes.

"All quiet," he said. "Let's go look at the Pandorica."

_XXXXXXXXX_

The Pandorica was glowing; clanking and clanging came from inside it. Donna stared at it.

"Maybe it's not for you," she said. "Maybe whatever it's for is already inside, and now it's getting out."

"In that case, it would be a future version of myself. The Pandorica recognized my DNA when I touched it."

He leaned against the box, looking very casual. If Donna hadn't known him so well, she would have thought he didn't have a care in the world.

"I'm worried about you, Donna," he said after a few minutes. "You don't know how to fly the Tardis. I should have given you more lessons."

"What good would the Tardis do me if … if you're gone?"

"You could escape, or something."  
"If you stay here, then I'm not leaving, even if I have to wait a thousand years."

He laughed thickly. "I know you would." Another pause. "Donna … I don't know what's going to happen … but just so you know, I think you're the most brilliant person I've ever met, human or otherwise. You don't know what you mean to me, because, well, I've never told you. Not straight out like I should have."

"Oh, shut up," said Donna. "If you didn't like me, you would have left me in Chiswick a long time ago. You've told me every day in the little things you do. But I haven't appreciated you like I should have." She reached out and put her hand on his shoulder.

At that instant something grabbed her ankle. She fell with a shriek.


End file.
